Thoughts from daily Bible reading for today – April 11, 2016
Jabez cried out to the God of Israel, “Oh, that you would bless me and enlarge my territory! Let your hand be with me, and keep me from harm so that I will be free from pain.” And God granted his request. 1 Chronicles 4:10
Our heavenly Father knows the exact time and the specific blessing each of His children needs. He knows when they need to be blessed, where they need to be blessed and how they need to be blessed. He customizes because He cares. Parents have the privilege of blessing their children based on their uniqueness—a good mom and dad love their children equally, but treat them uniquely. One child craves a parent’s blessing of affirming words, “I love you, I believe in you, You are beautiful.” Another needs cash compensation to make them feel valued for their work. Customized blessings come from a heart of love to a heart that needs love—a personalized love.
Jabez is Hebrew for pain. Born in a mother’s travail of childbirth, her physical pain was soon converted to a mother’s joy. Yes, an everyday example of how God turns a burden into a blessing. Like all humans, Jabez was a man of sorrow—as Jesus would be a man of sorrow. Also a man of prayer, he cries out to the one true God of Israel, whose leader Abraham was promised by the Lord to be blessed, along with his descendants. Customized blessings can come as a result of specific prayer requests. We cry out to Christ in bold faith, and trust Him to grant us His best.
“You help us by your prayers. Then many will give thanks on our behalf for the gracious favor granted us in answer to the prayers of many” (2 Corinthians 1:11).
Look around you and gratefully acknowledge the customized blessings Christ has given you. He knows just the right husband or wife you need or the friends you need to grow you into His likeness. See each child as the Lord’s unique gift, so by faith you let them be themselves, not forced to be someone you think they should become. The Holy Spirit surrounds you with relationships that offer you the customized care you need: encouragers, teachers, mentors, friends and counselors are all gifts not to be taken for granted. Thank Jesus for His personalized provisions.
Also, be bold to ask your heavenly Father for favor in those areas of life you long to see Him work. Godly ambition is ok. Pray the Holy Spirit will expand your influence, so others will come to Christ and grow in their faith. In humility, stay submitted to Almighty God: so He can work in you—so He can work through you—so He can work with you. Your partnership in the faith is unique to another’s partnership in the faith, so enjoy what Jesus does with you. Point people to the originator of your customized blessings. God blesses the bless-able—so, stay bless-able!
“Praise the Lord, my soul, and forget not all his benefits” (Psalm 103:2).
Prayer
Heavenly Father, thank You for uniquely blessing me with just what I need from You.Application
What customized blessing from the Lord do I need to pass on to bless others?Related Reading
Genesis 49:25; Job 8:7; Jeremiah 29:11; Psalm 40:5; 2 Corinthians 1:10-12Post/Tweet today
God works in you—so He can work through you—so He can work with you. #WisdomHunters #customizedblessingsWorship Resource
6 minutes –Brian Johnson: Have It All Check out Boyd’s newest devotional book Two Minutes in the Bible for Men. Order now! If you are blessed by these daily devotionals please prayerfully consider a donation to support Wisdom Hunters Resources. We are trusting the Lord for His provision. Learn how to help. Our free Apple app Our free Android appComments are closed.
I love it that these posts are always about getting in alignment with God, and then in alignment with others. That is what Jesus preached.
Dear Mr.Johnson,
Thank you for taking the time to reach out to us with your kind words. I appreciate your phrase “getting in alignment with God and then in alignment with others”. What a great way to characterize Jesus’ teachings.
“God’s Cumstomized Blessings” had some important reminders in it for so many of us who at times, that take our everyday faith and our blessings for granted (I speak for myself here). Boyd’s statement, “Look around you and gratefully acknowledge the customized blessings Christ has given you”, was a “good little nudge” (or maybe I should say “a gentle push”) to re-open our eyes to what He has done in our life.
It’s so easy sometimes, (again I am speaking personally) to get so caught up in our lives to stop and thank our Heavenly Father for the people He has put in our lives (“His personalized provisions”). In the devotional Boyd said, “The Holy Spirit surrounds you with the relationships that offer you the customized care you need: encouragers, teachers, mentors, friends and counselors are all gifts not to be taken for granted.” Wow, THANK YOU GOD. Please help me NOT to take these people for granted.
Thank you, Mr. Johnson, for being part of our Wisdom Hunters family. We look forward to hearing from you again.
Blessings to you and yours,
Gwynne
“Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”
1 Thessalonians 5: 16-18